Relaxation couch



Nov. 8. 1966 J. PANKERT RELAXATION COUCH 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 24, 1964 J- PANKERT RELAXATION COUCH Nov. 8, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 24, 1964 ar a/PAM) Nov. .8, 1966 J. PANKERT RELAXATION COUCH F .y 1 M 3 M z a Z .w M q N M m a. \lm HI\| Filed Sept. 24, 1964 United States Patent.

3,283,342 RELAXATION COUCH Jean Pankert, Eupen, Belgium, assignor to Etablissements Jean Pankert S.A., Eupen, Belgium Filed Sept. 24, 1964, Ser. No. 398,887 Claims priority, application Belgium, Nov. 6, 1963,

3 Claims. c1. -66) This invention concerns relaxation couches having an articulated metal support which can be tilted into various positions as the user desires.

Relaxation couches of this type are already known, in which a change of position of the support must be made before the user gets onto the couch, or in which, while resting on the couch, the user can change the position of the support by actuating a mechanism consisting of a toothedrsection or toothed bar ratchet mechanism. The weight of the body is however, a disadvantage in the actuating of this type of mechanism.

The invention aims at overcoming these disadvantages and at making the movement far easier and smoother, by the simple expedient of using the displacement of the weight of the body. With this object in view, the feature of the relaxation couch of the invention is that changes in position of the articulated metal support, brought about by the weight of the body of the user, are controlled solely by a brake system.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the support has a slotted member and the framework of the couch has a slider mounted on a connecting rod, the movements of the connecting rod transmitted from the slider and the slotted member being controlled by the brake system.

The invention will now be described with reference to the attached drawings which are not intended to be restrictive.

FIGURE 1 shows a plane view of the relaxation couch of the invention.

FIGURE 2 shows a front view of the mechanism for changing the position of the couch of FIGURE 1, on a larger scale.

FIGURE 3 shows a front view of the mechanism of FIGURE 2, in a further position of the couch.

FIGURE 4 is a vertical section on the line IVIV of FIGURE 3.

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the relaxation couch of the invention with the mechanism in bed position.

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5 with the mechanism in lounge position.

As can be seen from the drawings, the relaxation couch is constituted of a rectangular couch frame 1 having end rails 1a and side rails 1b of suflicient depth to conceal the entire mechanism when the articulated support is in bed position, and an articulated metal support 2 comprising movable sections A, B and C which are connected end-to-end by pivots 2a and 2b.

In the level position the support rests on the frame by means of two small end boards 3 and studs 4 mounted on longitudinal members of the couch framework.

The support 2 is pivotably connected to the frame of the couch by two pivots 5, one of which is mounted on a longitudinal bracket 6 which is seen in FIGS. 3 and 4 to be secured to the inner face of a side rail 1b where it is completely concealed by the couch frame 1.

The bracket 6 also serves as a guard plate 6 covering a connecting rod 7 carrying at one end a slider 8 which projects through a groove 9 in the guard plate. The connecting rod is adapted to be moved rectilinearly be Patented Nov. 8, 1966 "ice hind the guard plate 6, this movement being controlled by two lugs 10 fixed on the guard plate, each projecting into a control groove 11 of the connecting rod.

The movement of the connecting rod is brought about by the movement of the slider 8 in its groove 9, and this movement is itself started on the pivoting of the articulated support due to the weight of the body of the user, by means of a slotted member 12 fixed on the support, through which the slider projects.

The connecting rod 7 carries at its end opposite the slider 8 a brake lever 13 which, when in operation, locks the connecting rod against the guard plate by means of a Ferodo plate 14, or the like. Ferodo is the trademark for a friction brake lining material manufactured by Ferodo Limited of Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire, England. The lining is described in Friction Materials for Engineers, published in 1961 by Ferodo Limited of Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire, England.

The brake lever 13 is carried on a pivot pin 15 on which is pivotally mounted the brake plate 14. The lever end 16 is displaceable laterally on'pin 15 by its threaded portion 17 engageable with the thread 18 of the pin 15. threaded portion 18 towards the guard plate 6 causes the brake plate 14 to frictionally engage guard plate 6 and to thus block the connecting rod 7.

The pivoting mechanism of the relaxation couch of the invention is very simple: with the brake lever released, the weight of the body of the user can act on the articulated support to cause it to pivot at 5. As a result the slotted member 12 moves with the support and forces the slider to move in its groove 9. When the support has reached the position selected by the user, the latter actuates the brake lever to lock the system, the connecting rod being held in place at that moment and, with it, the slider, so that the slotted member and the support have to remain in the position selected.

In actual practice the slotted member will be of such shape that it is suitable for this movement, and the brake lever will be mounted regulatory on the guard plate to avoid, among other things, wear on the Ferodo plate.

With the relaxation couch of the invention an easy movement, without jerking, is obtained. The user can put the articulated support in any position he wishes without being constrained, for example, to accept a position determined by notches, also, he need not get off the couch to actuate the mechanism, and the weight of his body does not make the changing of position a difficult matter.

As seen in FIG. 5, in bed position the articulated support and the means for mounting it are positioned entirely between horizontal planes, indicated by the broken lines XX and YY in FIG. 5, which delineate the top and bottom surfaces of the couch frame; and in that position the friction brake means provides the sole part of the entire mechanism which projects above or below said planes.

It would not be going beyond the scope of the invention to imagine and carry out a relaxation couch with articulated support and with movement controlled solely by a brake system, where the support would be mounted on the couch framework in a way different from that described above simply by way of example.

I claim:

1. In a relaxation couch, in combination, a couch frame, an articulated support convertible by the Weight of the user and pivoted in said frame, slider means in said frame for pivoting said support, said slider means comprising a guard plate spacedly secured to said frame, said guard plate having a longitudinal groove therein The movement of the lever about the and a pair of guide lugs, a connecting rod displaceable between said guard plate and said frame, said rod being guided in a rectilinear path on said guide lugs, a slider secured to one end of said rod and projecting through said longitudinal groove, a slotted member having an arcuate slot, secured to said support, said slotted member being displaceable in an arcuate path about said slider, pivot means in said frame for pivoting said articulated support to said couch frame and friction brake means for locking said support in a desired position relative to said frame.

2. In a relaxation couch, in combination, a couch frame, an articulated support convertible by the weight ofthe user and pivoted in said frame, slider means in said frame for pivoting said support, said slider means comprising a guard plate spacedly secured to said frame, said guard plate having a longitudinal groove therein and a pair of guide lugs, a connecting rod displaceable between said guard plate and said frame, said rod being guided in a rectilinear path on said guide lugs, a slider secured to one end of said rod and projecting through said longitudinal groove, a slotted member having an arcuate slot, secured to said support, said slotted member being displaceable in an arcuate path about said slider, pivot means in said frame, for pivoting said articulated support to said couch frame friction brake means for locking said support in a desired position relative to said frame, said brake means comprising a friction shoe pivotally secured to the other end of said connecting rod and engageable with said guard plate and lever means secured to said friction shoe for engaging said shoe with said guard plate.

3. In a relaxation couch, in combination: a rectangular couch frame having side rails and end rails with top and bottom surfaces; longitudinal bracket means secured to the inner face of a side rail of said frame and lying entirely between horizontal planes which delineate the top and bottom surfaces of the couch frame; an

articulated support comprising a plurality of movable sections all of which are pivotally connected end-to-end; means mounting said support inside said frame for relative pivotal movement of said sections, said mounting means including a pair of aligned pivots one of which is on said bracket means, said pivots being so disposed with reference to the pivotal connections between the sections that the sections convert by the weight of a user from a coplanar bed position to a lounge position in which the sections are angularly disposed, said sections in bed position and the mounting means in said position being entirely between said horizontal planes; and friction brake means carried on said bracket, said brake means including relatively slidable parts, clamp means and an operating arm for locking the sections of said support in a desired position relative to each other and to said couch frame, said friction brake means being the only part of the mechanism that may project outside said horizontal planes in bed position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 722.439 3/1903 Wilsdorf 297-375 X 842,973 2/1907 Preston 2 5-66 X 2,108,913 2/1938 Bawer 5-66 2,595,240 5/ 1952 Glick et a1. 297-375 2,617,118 11/1952 Lorenz 5-69 3,003,160 10/1961 Goodman 5-69 3,175,229 3/1965 Bergenwall 5-66 FOREIGN PATENTS 152,278 11/1955 Sweden. 152,500 11/1955 Sweden.

FRANK B. SHERRY, Primary Examiner.

CASMIR A. NUNBERG, Examiner.

R. B. FARLEY, Asssitant Examiner. 

1. IN A RELAXATION COUCH, IN COMBINATION, A COUCH FRAME, AN ARTICULATED SUPPORT CONVERTIBLE BY THE WEIGHT OF THE USER AND PIVOTED IN SAID FRAME, SLIDER MEANS IN SAID FRAME FOR PIVOTING SAID SUPPORT, SAID SLIDER MEANS COMPRISING A GUARD PLATE SPACEDLY SECURED TO SAID FRAME, SAID GUARD PLATE HAVING A LONGITUDINAL GROVE THEREIN AND A PAIR OF GUIDE LUGS, A CONNECTING ROD DISPLACEABLE BETWEEN SAID GUARD PLATE AND SAID FRAME, SAID ROD BEING GUIDED IN A RECTILINEAR PATH ON SAID GUIDE LUGS, A SLIDER SECURED TO ONE END OF SAID ROD AND PROJECTING THROUGH SAID LONGITUDINAL GROOVE, A SLOTTED MEMBER HAVING AN ARCUATE SLOT, SECURED TO SAID SUPPORT, SAID SLOTTED MEMBER BEING DISPLACEABLE IN AN ARCUATE PATH ABOUT SAID SLIDER, PIVOT MEANS IN SAID FRAME FOR PIVOTING SAID ARTICULATED SUPPORT TO SAID COUCH FRAME AND FRICTION BRAKE MEANS FOR LOCKING SAID SUPPORT IN A DESIRED POSITION RELATIVE TO SAID FRAME. 